1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a windscreen wiper device of the flat blade type, particularly for automobiles, comprising an elastic, elongated carrier element, as well as an elongated wiper blade of a flexible material, which can be placed in abutment with a windscreen to be wiped, which wiper blade includes at least one longitudinal groove, in which groove a longitudinal strip of the carrier element is disposed, which wiper blade comprises a connecting device for an oscillating arm, wherein the oscillating arm near one end thereof is pivotally connected to the wiper blade and near the other end thereof is connected to a mounting head on a drive shaft for transferring a reciprocal movement to the wiper blade.
The present invention also refers to a single wiper blade, as well as to a single connecting device arranged to be used in a windscreen wiper device in accordance with the present invention.
Free ends of the strip or “flexor” are preferably connected to a respective connecting piece or “end cap”, wherein the wiper blade is preferably provided with a spoiler or cover at a side thereof facing away from the windscreen to be wiped.
It is noted that the present invention is not restricted to windscreen wiper devices for cars, but that it also relates to windscreen wiper devices for rail coaches and all of the (fast) vehicles.
2. Related Art
A windscreen wiper device of the flat blade type is generally known. The prior art windscreen wiper device is in particular indicated as a “flat blade” or “yokeless blade”, wherein use is no longer made of several yokes pivotally connected to each other, but wherein the wiper blade is biased by the carrier element, as a result of which it exhibits a specific curvature. In practice the oscillating arm is connected to the mounting head fixed for rotation to the shaft driven by a small motor. In use, the shaft rotates alternately in a clockwise and in a counter-clockwise sense carrying the mounting head into rotation also, which in turn draws the oscillating arm into rotation and by means of the connecting device moves the wiper blade.
A disadvantage of the known windscreen wiper device is the following. It practice it has become apparent that, during replacement of a wiper blade of the known windscreen wiper device, the wiper blade may be mounted on the oscillating arm in a reversed manner. More in particular, when in mounted position the wiper blade over a first portion of its length is covered by the oscillating arm and over a second portion of its length is provided with a single cover in order to ensure that the wiper blade at least to a large extend is invisible from the outside, during replacement the wiper blade may be mounted in a reverse manner such that the cover interferes with the oscillating arm. Further for example in case of a wiper blade for a rear window of an automobile, the longitudinal strip may be asymmetric, so that such a reversed mounting of the wiper blade seriously affects the wiping qualities thereof, particularly at high speeds, with all negative consequences involved.